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Why a single senator is blocking US military promotions and what it means for the Pentagon

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville is waging an unprecedented campaign to try to change Pentagon abortion policy by holding up hundreds of military nominations and promotions, forcing less experienced leaders into top jobs and raising concerns at the Pentagon about military readiness.Senators in both parties — including Republican Leader Mitch McConnell — have pushed back on Tuberville’s blockade, but Tuberville is dug in. He says he won’t drop the holds unless majority Democrats allow a vote on the policy.For now, the fight is at a stalemate. Democrats say a vote on every nominee could tie up the Senate floor for months. And they don’t want to give in to Tuberville’s demands and encourage similar blockades of nominees in the future.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said that holding up the promotion of military leaders, most of whom have dedicated their lives to protecting the country, “is one of the most abominable and outrageous things I have ever seen in this...

On the picket lines with Hollywood’s actors and writers, from LA to New York

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — It’s a “Strike Girl Summer.”So read a picket sign as the sidewalks of Hollywood and midtown Manhattan teemed with actors on Day 1 of their strike, protesting alongside the writers who have been at it since May. Together, the two guilds have ground the entertainment industry to a halt. On both coasts, though, there was a buoyant mood in the air as picket lines were reinvigorated by the support of some of the 65,000 actors who comprise SAG-AFTRA (98% of members voted to approve a strike back in June). This is Hollywood’s biggest labor fight in six decades, and the first dual strike since 1960, reigniting the fervor against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers just as a historic heat wave hits Southern California.Outside the Warner Bros. studios in Burbank, California, throngs of protesters chanted: “Fists up, curtains down, LA is a union town.” Food trucks flanking organizers’ tents served churros, boba tea and cold lemonade to p...

The Iowa caucuses are six months away. Some Republicans worry Trump may be unstoppable

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — He’s been indictedtwice. Found liable for sexual abuse. And he’s viewed unfavorably by about a third of his party. But six months before Republicans begin to choose their next presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump remains the race’s dominant front-runner.Early leaders don’t always go on to win their party’s nomination, but a growing sense of Trump’s inevitability is raising alarms among some Republicans desperate for the party to move on. Some described a sense of panic — or “DEFCON 1,” as one put it — as they scramble to try to derail Trump and change the trajectory of the race. But there’s no clear plan or strategy on how to do that and Trump’s detractors aren’t rallying around a single alternative candidate yet.“They’re very concerned,” former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said of fellow Republican leaders who share his view that renominating Trump would be a disaster for the party n...

Bargain-hunting Uruguayans are flocking to Argentina as its peso slides. Back home, shops struggle

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

GUALEGUAYCHÚ, Argentina (AP) — On a recent cross-border shopping trip, four friends from Fray Bentos, Uruguay, visited the nearby Argentine city of Gualeguaychu, where they could afford to live lavishly and snap up eye-popping bargains.Thanks to a huge disparity in the two South American countries’ currencies, Stella Ferreira and a friend treated themselves to a low-cost pampering at a hair salon, while two other friends hunted around for stylish but inexpensive pants.With its economy faltering, Argentina’s peso has plunged against the U.S. dollar and its annual inflation is 115.6%, one of the highest rates in the world. In contrast, Uruguay’s economy is more stable, with low inflation and a stronger currency. The result has been a huge flow of shoppers from Uruguay throwing an economic lifeline to struggling Argentine stores and restaurants in cities like Gualeguaychú, Concordia and Colón. But there’s a downside for Uruguayan businesses along the border: In the provinces of S...

Vermont starts long road to recovery from historic floods, helped by army of volunteers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

The Marshfield Village Store, which sits at the junction of two country highways in a tiny Vermont town, has become a little bit of everything in recent days as residents struggle to recover from historic floods that battered the state.First the shop in Marshfield, about 45 miles (70 kilometers) east of the state’s biggest city, Burlington, served as a shelter for about three dozen people. By Friday it was a distribution center for much-needed fresh water and a go-to for supplies. “We’re about to start putting it out more formally, if there are other folks who haven’t been able to get the support that they need yet, so that we can get equipment and volunteers to them, emergency medication, work on their properties, that’s where we’re at right now,” said Michelle Eddleman McCormick, the store’s general manager.Storms dumped up to two months’ worth of rain in a couple of days in parts of the region earlier this week, surpassing the amount that fell when Tropical Storm Irene blew throu...

The show must go on! Matilda shines even in the heat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

Temperatures are heating up in Central Texas and they aren't going away anytime soon."It said it was 110, when I was driving in," said a man working on the stage at Zilker Hillside Theatre.With afternoon temperatures being so high the lows aren't dropping as much as many of us would like.  "Temperatures haven't been falling below 100 degrees in Austin this week until 8 or 8:30 p.m. which is pretty extraordinary," said KXAN Meteorologist David Yeomans. "Typically, this time of year our high is 96, 97 degrees that means it could be in the upper 80's when the sun goes down, this is 10 or 12 degrees hotter than that."The heat isn’t stopping people from enjoying some of their favorite activities though, as it was packed at Matilda, which is being put on by Zilker Theatre Productions."Even with the heat, a small crowd will get 1000 to 1500,” said David Ponton.  “Big nights we are talking 3500."David Ponton is the Executive director of  Zilker Theatre Productions, he says a ...

Flood risks, power outages follow Friday's severe storms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

ST. LOUIS - A flood advisory will stretch into the overnight hours for some around the St. Louis region, and tens of thousands are without power after Friday's storms. The latest severe storm brought lightning, heavy rain and damaging winds around the region. Heavy rainfall also led to some scattered flooding in north St. Louis County, St. Charles County and the Metro East.As flood advisories still persist, there could be potentially some serious risks to streets and property. If a flood warning is issued in your area, find an area where you can move to higher ground immediately. Ameren reports around 30,000 people are without power in Missouri and Illinois after Friday’s round of storms. St. Louis radar: See a map of current weather here Per Ameren's county breakdown, around this many customers are dealing with power outages as of 11 p.m. Friday...Customers without power in MissouriSt. Charles – 100St. Louis County – 20,000St. Louis City – 1,000Jefferson – 1,200C...

Man faces life in prison for killing 3 teens after doorbell prank in Riverside County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

A man who killed three teenage boys in Riverside County after they played a doorbell-ringing prank on him in 2020 was sentenced to life in prison on Friday.Anurag Chandra, 45, from Corona, faces life in prison without the possibility of parole after he was convicted by a jury in April of three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder, according to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.The deadly crash happened on Jan. 19, 2020, as six teenage boys were having a sleepover that night. One of the boys was given a dare to approach Chandra’s home on Modjeska Summit Road.After ringing Chandra’s doorbell, the teens quickly drove away in a 2002 Toyota Prius.Chandra chased down the six teens in his 2019 Infinity Q50 and eventually caught up with them on Temescal Canyon Road near Squaw Mountain Road.Chandra rear-ended and sideswiped their vehicle until they were forced off the road before slamming into a tree. Chandra had reached speeds of 99 miles per hour...

California foster youth can now attend college for free

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

Foster youth across California will now be able to attend college, free of charge, after new legislation, SB 307, was signed into the state budget Monday. The new Fostering Futures program will cover the entire cost for foster youth to attend a University of California, California State or California community college.93% of foster youth in California want to attend college, but only 4% will attend and graduate with a degree. In addition, foster youth are directly impacted, more than other youth, by significant increases in cost of living, which further impedes their ability to go to college. (Getty Images)An expansion of the existing Middle Class Scholarship, MCS, program, the Fostering Futures program will cover college tuition for foster youth in addition to other costs including books, food and lodging. Officials say the program serves to both increase the likelihood that foster youth can reach their educational goals and also better prepare them to enter the next stage of their...

Orange County doctor sentenced to nearly 3 years for accepting illegal surgery payments

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:14 GMT

Orthopedic surgeon David Payne, 66, of Irvine was sentenced to 33 months in prison for accepting more than $315,000 in illegal payments, bribes, and kickbacks for performing spinal surgeries at a corrupt Long Beach hospital that has been shut down. He was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine and to surrender the $316, 597 he received in illegal payments. Payne was convicted on March 3 of conspiracy, honest services wire fraud, and use of an interstate facility in aid of bribery.The owner of the Long Beach Pacific Hospital, Michael Drobot, conspired with Payne and other doctors, chiropractors, and marketers to pay kickbacks and bribes in return for patient referrals to the hospital for spinal surgeries and other medical services. Drobot paid Payne up to $15,000 for each spinal surgery that he performed at the hospital. They allegedly covered up the bribes by disguising the payments as marketing services and fees. In the final years of the scheme, it garnered more than $500 million...